Single GPU vs 750i vs P45

[Brodie]

Hey everyone, I'm planning on building a budget system for gaming and 3D editing (3ds max and UnrealED). I have around $700 to spend. I read the sticky at the top but it didn't really mention any non-SLI or non-Crossfire mobos. I'd really like to get the E8400 and 9800GTX+. What would be a decent mobo for this setup that OC's well? Or would I be better off getting a SLI or CF mobo like a P45 or 750i, but I really don't plan on running SLI or Crossfire. I've also been eyeing the 4870 but I'd really like to stick with Nvidia if possible. I'm open to all suggestions, thanks guys.

Edit: Forgot to mention I already have 64 Bit Vista, all peripherals and a monitor.

 

[Helloworld_98]

the amd 720 x3 and a 4870 with 790 chipset mobo would be better for what your doing because of the extra core and gpu power.

If you do that then you'll have a choice between am3 mobo's or am2+ mobo's. Or a choice between ddr2 and ddr3.

 

[Brodie]

Well I read that the Core2Duo is better for gaming compared to the AMD x3's. I'd rather have a faster gaming machine and have my renders take a bit extra time.

 

[dirtmountain]

The P45 is a more stable mobo then the 750i. If you're just using a single GPU, then there's no problem at all with using a Nvidia GPU in the P45. With recent drivers the 9800GTX+ is outperforming the HD4850 in most games.

 

[boulard83]

Yup, agree, with 700$ :

P45 + E8400 (with decent cooling) + 2x2gb ddr2 1066 + GTX260 if you can

with a PC-P&C 610watts (big deal right now) and an RC-690 as case or antec 300 if budget tight.

 

[Brodie]

Thanks for the replies guys, ok so I have it narrowed down to the 8400, a P45 MB, most likely the ASUS P5Q Pro, and 4 GB of RAM. Now the question is:

EVGA 512-P3-N873-AR GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP

or

SAPPHIRE 100259L Radeon HD 4870 512MB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP

 

[boulard83]

4870 512 is better.